Quick Dal Makhani
Total Time
1 hour
Prep Time
15 minutes
Cook Time
45 minutes
Rating
4.7 out of 5 stars
(90)
Ingredients
4 servings
- 2 tablespoons avocado oil or extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 medium yellow onion, chopped
- 3 cloves garlic, pressed or minced
- 1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger
- 1 jalapeño pepper, seeds and membranes removed, minced
- 1 ½ teaspoons Frontier Co-op garam masala
- ½ teaspoon Frontier Co-op ground cumin
- ½ teaspoon Frontier Co-op ground coriander
- ½ teaspoon salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
- 1 can (15 ounces) diced tomatoes (preferably the fire-roasted variety), with their juices
- 1 cup uncooked black lentils (also called beluga lentils), picked over for debris
- 1 can (15 ounces) kidney beans, rinsed and drained, or 1 ½ cups cooked kidney beans
- 5 cups water
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 tablespoon lime juice, plus additional lime wedges for serving
- Optional (for additional creaminess): half-and-half, or regular or light coconut milk
- Chopped fresh cilantro, for garnish
- Suggested accompaniments: cooked brown basmati rice or toasted naan
How would you rate this recipe?
Preparation
Step 1
In a large pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat, warm the oil until shimmering. Add the onion, garlic, ginger, and jalapeño, and cook until softened, stirring occasionally, about 4 to 6 minutes.
Step 2
Stir in the garam masala, cumin, coriander, and salt. Season generously with black pepper. Cook, while stirring, for 1 minute.
Step 3
Add the tomatoes and cook for 1 more minute, while stirring. Add the lentils, kidney beans, water, and bay leaf. Raise the heat to medium-high and bring the mixture to a simmer. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer until the lentils are nice and tender, stirring occasionally, about 35 minutes.
Step 4
Remove the bay leaf. Transfer 2 cups of the mixture (make sure to get some liquid with the lentils) to a blender. Securely fasten the lid. Blend until smooth, about 1 minute, being careful to avoid the hot steam rising from the blender lid.
Step 5
Transfer the blended mixture back to the pot and stir to combine. Add the lime juice and season to taste with salt (I usually add ½ teaspoon) and pepper. If you would like to temper the flavor and make the mixture even more creamy, stir in a splash of half-and-half or coconut milk, to taste.
Step 6
Serve in bowls, with chopped cilantro and a lime wedge on top. If desired, serve rice or naan on the side. Leftovers keep well, refrigerated, for up to 5 days.
Step 7
Save recipe for the next time?
Chef's notes
Make it dairy free/vegan:
Use coconut milk instead of half-and-half, or use none at all.
Change it up:
While untraditional, I also love this recipe with regular curry powder instead of garam masala.
Lentil note:
This recipe is not designed for traditional urad dal (whole black gram lentils), which take forever to cook. Standard lentils (the brownish/greenish kind) will work in place of the black lentils. Just keep an eye on them, since they may be done cooking about 5 to 10 minutes sooner.
